With less than a month to go before the start of the season, it’s time for projections and predictions. Earlier this week, The Athletic’s Corey Pronman published his ranking of NHL rebuilds.
To compile the ranking, he evaluated which rebuilding teams would likely win a Stanley Cup in the next ten years. All 16 non-playoff teams from last season are on the list, even if they do not consider themselves to be in a rebuild.
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Where do you think the Montreal Canadiens come in? I can tell you they are not on the podium and nowhere near it. The Chicago Blackhawks take first place, followed by the Ottawa Senators, and the Anaheim Ducks round out the top three.
Connor Bedard is a big part of the reason why the Hawks get the gold star, Pronman mentions they have the superstar is looking for. However, getting a superstar, even if it is a generational talent, does not guarantee you contending status in short order.
Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews, and Leon Draisaitl are still looking for their first Stanley Cup. The Core Four in Toronto is even struggling to get out of the first round; talent alone doesn’t win championships.
Related: The Hockey News Yearbook Has the Canadiens Finishing Dead Last in the Atlantic Division
I find the Senators’ claim of second place somewhat puzzling. Yes, they finally got a quality goaltender in Linus Ullmark from the Boston Bruins, but having good goaltending, especially from a 31-year-old, doesn’t mean you’ll win the Cup in the next 10 years.
By the time the young Sens are ready to contend, Ullmark might not even be around anymore. Aside from Brady Tkachuk and Tim Stutzle, Ottawa also has Carter Yakemchuk coming up, but I fail to see how their prospect pool puts them in second place. The nation’s capital has been rebuilding for years and I don’t see how the end of the tunnel suddenly got so much closer.
Meanwhile, the Ducks grab the third spot because they are building a “highly desirable group of young talent.” Sure, they have Trevor Zegras, and he’s talented, but he’s also on the trading block, which makes it hard to evaluate the state of the Anaheim franchise right now. If he does get traded, will they get full value?
The Canadiens are ranked ninth in Pronman’s rankings.
He acknowledges Montreal has very good young forwards, such as Ivan Demidov, Juraj Slafkovsky, Cole Caufield, and Nick Suzuki. However, he points out the center depth as a concern if Kirby Dach cannot stay healthy and the fact that the Habs still need to get “a true premium blueliner or two.”
While I feel this evaluation is harsh, it’s impossible to argue about the Dach point. Montreal desperately needs its second-line centre to play an entire season and avoid injury.
You can’t contend with one true scoring line, and if you take out a top-six center, any team will struggle. So, I can understand that caveat, but I disagree when it comes to the blueliners.
Sure, it’s very early regarding Lane Hutson, David Reinbacher, and Logan Mailloux, but they can be a true premium blueliner or two in there. They might not be ready yet, but they are getting nearer. Seeing how things develop on the back end this season will be interesting. Who knows, they may just make Pronman eat a bit of humble pie.
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